1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a known exposure apparatus synchronously scans the original and the substrate and exposes a plurality of areas (screens) on the original onto a substrate (plate) at an equal magnification via a plurality of different projection optical systems (Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-093953). An inexpensive exposure of a large liquid crystal panel with good yield has recently been increasingly required to inexpensively supply a large amount of wide-screen liquid crystal displays. The conventional equal-magnification projection optical system may require a large original to expose a large liquid crystal panel, and thus a precise manufacture of the large liquid crystal panel would cause a cost increase. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-265848, 2007-286580, and 2007-249169 propose use of a projection optical system having an enlargement magnification to reduce a size of the original.
However, according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-265848, 2007-286580, and 2007-249169, an optical axis of each projection optical system at the original side coincides with its optical axis at the substrate side. In other words, since the point at which the optical axis of each projection optical system at the original side is projected onto the substrate accords with the point at which the optical axis at the substrate side is projected onto the substrate, the projection optical system is likely to physically interfere unless respective areas on the original are greatly separated. As a result, the original is still large, and there is room for a miniaturization. It is also important to connect screens on the substrate.